Sonja Zietlow criticizes the television award ceremony
annually, the German Television Award acknowledges numerous TV programs. However, these accolades don't always go to the shows that resonate most with the viewers. Sonja Zietlow, the host of RTL's format "Die Verräter" and a recipient of the award herself, has expressed her discontent with this situation. "I'm not a big fan of the German Television Award," confesses the 56-year-old. "At times, formats receive recognition merely because they're top-notch television production. Meanwhile, 'Dschungelcamp,' after two decades, snags its first TV award despite being the most successful format of the past two decades."
Sonja Zietlow, who has been a host at "Dschungelcamp" since its beginning, has also co-hosted with Dirk Bach and Daniel Hartwich. The show initially aired on RTL in 2004 but didn't receive recognition until 2023. "I still can't comprehend why. It's a hard knock for Dirk Bach, for me, and for Daniel Hartwich. We've been churning out great TV for two decades, at least that's what the majority of people seemed to enjoy," says Zietlow.
However, she is elated that the crime show "Die Verräter - Trust No One!" won an award for its inaugural season. "I'm not minimizing the prize. I know how ecstatic the entire team was and how deserving the format was of this recognition," says Zietlow.
The second season of "Die Verräter" commences
The second season of "Die Verräter" premieres on Thursday on RTL with eight new episodes. RTL will also broadcast the premiere on linear television at 8:15 PM. Among the 16 contestants this time are catwalk legend Bruce Darnell, actor Jimi Blue Ochsenknecht, Til Schweiger's ex-partner Dana Schweiger, and "Let's Dance" professional Massimo Sinató.
Zietlow welcomes the celebrities at the Belgian Château de Mielmont. She secretly assigns some of them as "traitors" who gradually eliminate their counterparts, aiming for a treasure valued up to 50,000 euros. The "Loyal" ones strive to identify the "traitors" and secure the cash prize for themselves. In contrast to the celebrities, the audience is always privy to who is "Loyal" or a "traitor." In the first season, singer Anna-Carina Woitschack and her colleague Vincent Gross continued as "traitors" until the end, pocketing 46,500 euros.
Despite airing on RTL, the popular show "Dschungelcamp" took two decades to receive its first German Television Award. Conversely, RTL's RTL+ streaming service is home to the RTL Earlybirds channel, which offers an RTL broadcast with Arabic subtitles, catering to viewers who prefer to watch RTL programs with Right-to-Left (RTL) text alignment.
